DCC building is a boon for Congress members

KOCHI : Congress members in Ernakulam have long cherished the dream to have a district committee office with all modern facilities put in place. The dream is all set to turn into reality on May 26, when Defence Minister A K Antony will inaugurate the District Congress Committee (DCC) building here.The building is ready except for a some minor furnishing works. Talking to the City Express, DCC president V J Paulose said, “In 2007, the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) had decided to raise funds to make all DCCs efficient. As part of the campaign, we collected `35 lakh. It was around this time that we thought of coming up with a building. Therefore, instead of using the fund for DCC activities, we decided to utilise the money for the construction for a new building.”The DCC had raised the funds through a fundraising campaign. Also, many other institutions helped in a great way, the DCC president said. Paulose added that he was confident of constructing a new building as he has vast experience in building new offices for the party. “I had initiated the drive  to construct a three-storey building for the party at my native place Mulanthuruthy and also at Kothamangalam. Those projects gave me the confidence that it was possible to build a new building here,” he said.KPCC president Ramesh Chennithala laid the foundation stone for the new building in 2009. “The construction work began when the Congress was in the opposition. We wanted to complete the construction work while being the opposition. However, the elections to the Parliament, local bodies and the assembly led to the delay in the works,” he said.Paulose also said that he is attached to the old DCC office building - Chaitanya, as he has spent a lot of time there before he got married. “Most of the Congress workers are deeply attached to the old building. Though the new building will be known as Karunakara Bhavan, no one will ever be able to forget the old Chaitanya,” he said.Deliberating on the facilities in the building, he said the second, third and the fourth floors will house the DCC office. The ground floor and the first floor would be rented out. A conference hall, that can seat about 250 people, is on the fifth floor. The second floor has a mini hall that can  seat about 50 people.